Mike Whaley/Citizen photo
Marshwood senior Tyler Davidson, top, is going for his fourth straight individual state title when the Hawks wrestle at the Class A states next Saturday in Sanford.

SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — Tyler Davidson will do whatever it takes to help the Marshwood High School wrestling team to its second straight Maine Class A championship, and his fourth straight individual title.

Even downing copious amounts of cabbage soup.

“I’m not a big fan of cabbage, let alone the broth,” said Marshwood coach Matt Rix. “I couldn’t believe some of the things he told me he was eating. He keeps his body functioning well enough to get through the toughest practices. He did it for the team so he could wrestle at a higher weight.”

Davidson tried cabbage soup last year as part of an extremely strict diet he has followed his entire wrestling career.

“It worked, but it wasn’t the best tasting thing,” Davidson said. “I’m always trying different things out. I did it for a week before states. The thing with cabbage soup is that you’re getting nutrients but it takes more to burn.”

His strict diet is just one reason Davidson is one of the best in the state and is in position to become only the second Marshwood wrestler to win four individual titles — Jon Hussey is the other in 2008.

“You can see it in his eyes,” Rix said. “He’s very intense. He’s tall and lanky and has a long reach, but that’s deceiving. It’s hard to grab a hold of him. He’ll take anybody on. Tyler loves that type of competition.”

The state championship meet, orginally scheduled for Saturday in Augusta, was pushed back to this Saturday at Sanford High School. Davidson won the Western Maine championship last week at 120 pounds, one of six Marshwood wrestlers to do so. Davidson believes his toughest competition at the state meet will be Massabesic’s Lucas Dion, whom Davidson defeated in the regional final.

“I beat him 7-3 at regionals, but before that he beat me twice,” Davidson said. “So it might come down to who has the better day. I’m not taking anything for granted, that’s for sure. It’s going to be tough.”

While Davidson relies on video to prepare for upcoming matches, he also relies on a strong memory, which helped him overcome a pair of previous losses to Dion for a win at the regional final in his home gym.

“He has the ability to keep his matches in his head, the things he did right and wrong,” Rix said. “That’s a tough thing to do, to visualize it afterward, but he has the ability to do that. He picks out situations like a coach does.”

Davidson said he doesn’t beat himself up too much when he loses.

“I use them as motivation to get better,” he said. “And as a source of information to fix those mistakes and focus on them. Usually it shows in my next matches. I usually don’t go out there and make the same mistakes.”

Given his success, it’s hard to believe Davidson didn’t start wrestling until he was in eighth grade.

“I remember watching him at the New England tournament,” Rix said. “He was a little awkward but moved well. I talked him into coming to wrestling camp in the summer.”

Davidson will take his game to the Naval Academy Preparatory School in Rhode Island for a post-graduate year, with the hope of wrestling and majoring in international studies at the United States Naval Academy. He plans to use that as a springboard for a full-fledged military career.

In the meantime, he is focused on winning that fourth state title, and hopefully another team state title for the Hawks.

“It definitely would mean a lot,” Davidson said. “Once I won my first one my freshman year, that was my goal, to win four straight. I’m three-fourths of the way there.”